In the last episode of this series, Spiritual Forces in the Heavens, I introduced a fourth category of celestial beings in the Angelic Hierarchy called Principalities & Powers. In that episode, I identified *Seven Great Angelic Powers: The Angel of the Abyss, The Angel of Death, The Mighty Angel, The Angel of Great Authority, The Angel of the Lord, The Angel of God’s Presence, and The Satan. I’ve titled this episode *Celestial Powers Unveiled: Abandon & Destruction.
I want to recap that in the last episode; we saw why and how God utilized these Powerful Angels to interact in the lives and history of humanity. First, how does God use these angelic powers as examples of his thoughts and character? Scripture tells us we don’t think like God, and he doesn’t think like us. These angelic powers interact with us. They show how and what God thinks and devises his plan for us. Second, the why: Because we can’t see God. God is Spirit. How can we know what we can’t see? But we do see these angels exercising sovereignty in heaven and on earth. In “seeing” their actions, we get to know God and the Spirit. This shows us how God thinks and acts in heaven and earth, and we are led to the ultimate and expressed image of God, his Son Jesus Christ. I’ll tell you a secret: everything in the Bible leads to Jesus. Everything!
The Bible was written for societies structured around kingdoms. They were born, lived, and died under the rule of an all-powerful king. Often, they believed that God had chosen their king or even was god. The king made the laws and decided life and death. The king, for most people, was a mysterious and unapproachable enigma. They only knew the king by his laws and those in his court who enforced them. It was natural for people to see God as the most powerful king. So, it was natural to assume God would have a court and a throne in heaven like a king on earth. We see this in 1 Kings 22:19.
What did an earthly king’s court look like? The king’s Court consisted of 1) General functionaries, 2) Throne keepers, 3) The royal family, 4) Advisors, 5) The Palace Guard, 6) The King’s Army, 7) Royal emissaries, and 8) Royal adversaries. So, if God’s court were similar, it would have; 1) General functionaries (myriads of angels, messengers, ministers, worshippers, and morning stars), 2) Throne Keepers (those closest to the divine presence of God – Cherubim, and Seraphim), 3) The Royal Family (The Sons of God), 4) Advisors (Holy Ones, Witnesses, and Watchers), 5) The Palace Guard (The Archangels), 6) The King’s Army (Mighty Ones, strong angels), 7) Royal Emissaries (The seven great angelic powers we’re going to begin talking about here – The Angel of the Abyss, The Angel of Death, the Mighty Angel, the Angel of Great Authority, the Angel of the LORD, and the Angel of His Presence. The final member in every king’s court, including God’s, is the Royal Adversary, which is, of course The Satan. We’ll discuss the role of “The Satan” a few episodes later. I want to focus on two great powers and God’s royal emissaries in this episode: The Angel of the Abyss and the Angel of Death.
I’ve discussed the Significance of “ha” (Hebrew). In Hebrew, the definite article “ha” is used to specify a particular person or thing, translating to “The.” When applied to titles such as “The Angel of Death,” it emphasizes a specific role of function rather than a personal name. The Angel of Death: Indicates a specific angelic role assigned to carry out God’s judgment of death. The Angel of the Abyss also has an angel role, exercising authority over the domain of the Abyss. Using the definite article “ha” shows the Jews thought of these great powers corporately, not individually. It’s like “The Nation of Babylon”, “The Israelites”, or “The Church.” These titles aren’t personal identities but corporate roles.
In the first century, a well-known Jewish philosopher lived in Alexandria, Egypt, and taught a common second temple belief that there were six divine powers. The temple priests in Jerusalem taught that there were seven powers or spirits of God, represented in the seven branches of the Temple Menorah. It was commonly recognized during the time of Jesus and the disciples that these powers were expressions of God in heaven and earth. In Isaiah 11:1-2 we see the seven Spirits of God.
The Angel of the Abyss corresponds to God’s “Spirit of Strength.” The Hebrew word “strength” means force, power, and victory. This Spirit signifies that it can’t be defeated. This aspect of God as Spirit is known and seen through the Angel of the Abyss. We see this angel in Revelation 9:11. This angel has judgmental, punitive power (Revelation 20:1-3).
Naturally, we wonder what this abyss this angel has the power to lock and seal that no one can break (Job 26:6). The abyss is “Sheol,” and sheol is the grave. The grave is naked before God. Nothing is hidden from God; therefore, nothing is hidden from the Angel of the grave, and no one can escape the grave. The grave/abyss is the consequence of all disobedience, whether angelic or human. The other significance of the abyss is its darkness, which signifies our inability to know about an eternal afterlife because only God has the knowledge and can judge and determine the afterlife.
The Angel of the Abyss and the Angel of Death have a close association, according to Job 28:20-23. What is God’s plan for humanity? It’s hidden from us. We’re unable to make sense of our lives on earth. But abandon and destruction have heard God’s plan and its outcome.
The Angel of Death/ The Destroyer – corresponds to God’s “Spirit of counsel.” The Hebrew word “counsel” means legal advice and comes from a root word that means to deliberate and determine; in other words, to judge. This Spirit signifies a legislative power to pass sentences. This is an aspect of God as Spirit, his judgment, we know and see through the Angel of Death. Let’s look at some passages about this angel:
When the LORD passes through to strike Egypt and sees the blood on the lintel and the two doorposts, he will pass over the door and not let the destroyer enter your houses to strike you (Exodus 12:23). We also see a plague sent upon Israel because of David’s sin in 2 Samuel 24:15-16. The Role of the Angel of Death is to execute God’s legislative judgment on individuals and nations. The Angel of Death represents that life and death are in God’s hands. We see God’s sovereignty and divine justice through the Angel of Death (Revelation 6:8).
The Angel of the Abyss and the Angel of Death are forces in the world displaying God’s punitive and legislative judgment for the sins of humanity. The power of death and the grave overshadows the minds and hearts of every person because we are all aware of our sins and rebellion against God. These emissaries of God’s court make us aware that no one can escape his divine justice and total sovereignty of his judgment. As we reflect on these forces of life, the grave, and death, we’re aware of our abandonment and destruction without God’s mercy and grace. These forces from God show us our need for God and drive us to understand his plan for mankind. Every person is held captive to the grave and death. There is no escape. However, God, in his plan, did provide a way to break the chains holding us in fear of death and the grave. That escape is faith in the one who overcame both powers: Jesus Christ.
